Latch for automobile doors



B. E. TAYLOR.

LATCH FOR AUTOMOBILE DOORS. APPLICATION man JUNE 21. 1320.

lfl fififig Patented Aug. 15, 1922.

4 SHEETS-SHEET l- B. g. TAYLOR.

LATCH FOR AUTOMOBILE DOORS. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 21, 1920.

Patented Aug. 15,1922.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

ig-g B. E. TAYLOR. LATCH FOB AUTOMOBILE DOORS. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 21, I920- 2w T E 5M 14 gm HE A w %4 m .w a P B. E. TAYLOR.

LATCH FOR AUTOMOBILE DOORS.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 21. 1920.

1,% 5,552. Patented Aug. 15, 1922.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

our

BAYARD E. TAYLOR, 0F OAK PARK, ILLINOIS.

LATCH FOR AUTOMOBILE DOORS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 15, 1922.

Application filed June 21, 1920. Serial No. 390,343.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, BAYARD E. TAYLOR, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the village of Oak Park, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in a Latch for Automobile Doors; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the numerals of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to an improved type of a latching mechanism for an automobile door, and more particularly to a lock wherein a normally projected spring controlled latching bolt is adapted to be retracted by the operation of an outer handle or by means of a rotatable inner handle which, when operated, acts through a cam mechanism to slidably adjust a vertical shaft to cause retraction of the latching bolt from its projected latching position topermit opening of the door.

It is an object of this invention to provide a vehicle door lock having a vertically disposed slidable shaft for releasing the lock latch.

A further object of the invention is the construction of a vehicle door latch wherein the latching members are adapted to be released from the inner side of the door by rotating a handle to cause operation of the latching members by a vertically adjustable shaft.

Another object of the invention is to provide an automobile door lock with a pivoted member adapted to be actuated, to cause re lease of a latching member, by pulling or pushing a vertical shaft operable by a rotatable handle.

Itis furthermore an object of the invention to provide a vehicle door lock With a latch releasing mechanism operable from the interior of a closed vehicle body by rotating a handle. 7

It is an important object of this invention to provide a vehicle door lock wherein a latch is adapted to be retracted from the interior of a closed vehicle body by rotating a handle to cause a cam mechanism to slidably shift a vertical rod.

Other and further important objects of this invention will be apparent from the disclosures in the specification and drawings.

The invention (in a preferred form) is illustrated in the drawings and hereinafter more fully described.

On the drawings:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of a door lock embodying the principlesv of this invention and showing one of the lock operating handles.

Figure 2 is an enlarged view of the lock with the casing removed and showing parts in section. I

Figure 3 is an end View thereof with the casing in place and With part of the upper handle omitted.

Figure l'is a fragmentary detail section taken on line 44 of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a rear view of the wedge member.

Figure 6 is a front elevation of the back plate partly in section and showing the latch bolt in position.

Figure 7 is a fragmentary detail section taken on line 77 of Figure 2.

Figure 8 is a horizontal transverse section taken through the door lock, the door and the door frame.

Figure 9 is an end view of the door lock looking at the flanged end of the back plate.

Figure 10 is an enlarged view of the strike plate showing part of the door amb.

Figure 11 is a fragmentary detail section taken on line 1111-of Figure 2.

Figure 12 is a fragmentary vertical detail section taken through the upper portion of the inner door handle.

Figure 13 is a top plan view of the upper handle bearing cap showingthe cam forminn a part thereof.

Figure 14 is a bottom plan view of the cam end of the upper handle. I

Figure 15 is a front elevation of a modified form of door lock with the casing removed.

Figure 16 is a top plan view of the upper handle mechanism.

Figure 17 is a sectional view taken on line 17--17 of Figure 16 showing parts in'elevation. 1

Figure 18 is a fragmentary detail section taken on line 18-18 of Figure 17.

Figure 19 is a sectional bottom plan view of the upper handle showing the cam and taken on line 19-'19 of Figure 17.

Figure 20 is a detail section taken on line 20-20 of F igure 17 with parts omitted.

As shown on the drawings:

The reference numeral 1 indicates an automobile body door frame or jamb rovided with'a latch receiving recess 2 an having secured on the jamb face thereof a strike plate 3. Integrally formed on the strike plate is an abutment at provided with an inclined surface 5 which adords an increased bearing surfacefor a wedge hereinafter described. l-lingedly mounted in the door frame 1 is a door 6 having mounted in a shallow recess thereof a comparatively thin door lock embodying the principles of this invention. The door lock illustrated in Fig ures 1 to 14 inclusive, embraces a mounting plate or back plate* one end of which is bent-forwardly at an angle to afford a flange 8 having an opening therein to permit the lock latching members to project therethrough. A T-bar 8 is secured on the outer edge of the door.

Secured between two lugs 9 struck from the back plate 7 is the inner end of a coiled controlling sprin 10, the outer end of which projects ownwardly and engages against a pivoted lever or arm 11. The upper end of the lever 11 is pivoted on a pin 12 integrally formed on one side of the innor end of a slidable wedge bar 13. lint-egrally formed on the opposite side of the slidable bar 13 is a guide bloclr or lug 14:, which projects into a horizontal guide slot 15 formed in a cover or casing plate 13' to enclose the operating mechanisms of the lock. The rearward movement of the wedge bar 13 is limited by the lug 1 1 striking the casing at the end of the guide'slot 15. The wedge bar 13 has rigidly secured on the end thereof a wedge block 17, which is slidable through the opening in the flange 8 and is furthermore adapted by rearward movement of the wedge bar 13 to move in a recess 18 cut in the door 6 as shown in Figure 8. The casing 16 is provided with an opening 19 to permit retraction of the wedge 17.

The wedge slide bar 13 is cut away at the sides thereof to afford shoulders 20 adapted to contact the inner ends of flanges 21 integrally formed on opposite margins of a slidable latch bolt 22. Integrally formed on the inner end of the latch bolt 22 is a downwardly directed arm 23, the lower end of which is deflected and bent inwardly toward the back plate 7 to form a lug or flange 24. Also integrally formed on the latch bolt arm 23 is a horizontal ide memher or arm 25, which is deflecte to permit the same to slidably on age in a longitudinal guide slot 26 provi ed in the casin 16. The end of the arm 25 is bent tower the back plate 7 to form a lug or flange 27. As shown in F igure 2, the lower end of the lever 11 contacts the flange 24c of the latch bolt arm 23 to permit the spring 10 to hold I the latch bolt in projected position. To retract the latch bolt 22 to permit opening of the door from the exterior of a vehicle, an outer door handle or thumbbutton 28 is provided having a squared stem 29, the inner end of which projects into a square opening formed in a 'rotatable collar 30 journalled between the back plate 7 and the casing 16 as illustrated in Figure 7. Integrally formed on the collar 30 is a dog or roll back 31, the free end of which is in engagement with the latch bolt arm 23. JV hen the thumb button 28 is turned the roll back 31 acts to force the latch bolt 22 inwardly together with the wedge 17 since the flanges 21 of the latch bolt are in contact with the shoulders 20 of the wedge slide bar 13.

For the purpose of opening the door from the interior of a closed vehicle body a second or inner rotatable handle 32 is provided on the top of the door. A head 33 is integrally formed at one end of the handle 32, and integrally formed on the bottom of said head is a cam 34, which normally seats against a stationary cam 35 formed within a sleeve 36 integrally formed on a cap plate 37. The cap plate 37 is secured to the top of the door 6 by screws or other suitable means. Secured to the upper margin of the back plate 7 is an upright bracket 38, the upper end of which is bent forwardly to form a horizontal lug or flange 39 having a threaded aperture therein. Threaded into the flange 29 is the lower threaded end of a sleeve or cylindrical housing 40, the upper end of which is'engaged in the lower end of the sleeve 36 below a horizontal partition d1, as illustrated in Figure 12. Thehead 33 of the handle 32 is secured by means of a screw 12 on the upper cylindrical end of a vertical rod or shaft 43, which projects downwardly through the sleeve 40. The

.vertical shaft 43 is formed with a square neck 44-near its upper end. The square neck 44 is slidably engaged through a square opening provided in the partition 41. The vertical shaft is thus prevented from bein rotated and is only permitted to be slida ly adjusted vertically. The lower end of the vertical shaft 43 is threaded and has adjustably mounted thereon a guide block 15, which is engaged to slide in a vertical guide channel 46 formed by de tossing a portion of the back plate 7. ntegrally formed on one side of the block 15 is a horizontal lug or tooth 17, which normally is positioned to engage beneath the short arm 48 of a bell-crank having a long arm 49. The bell crank is pivotally mounted on a pin 50 provided on the front surface of the back plate 7. The lower end of the long bell downwardly into normal position thereby.

returningthe handle 32 to normal position.

In the preferred form ofdoor lock illustrated in Figures 15 to 20 inclusive, the operation of opening the door from the exterior of the vehicle is identical withthe operation hereinbefore described. For the purpose of openin the door from the interior of the vehicle t e handle 51 is rotated in a horizontal plane whereby the handle cam 53 co-acting with the cam 54 serves to slidably force the cam sleeve 55 downwardly. The sleeve 55 thus causes the tubular vertical shaft 61 to slide downwardly thereby pushing the lug 655against the short bell crank arm 66 and swinging the long bell crank arm 67 rearwardly against the lu 27 to retract the latch bolt 22 and the we ge 17. The swinging of the handle 51 to retract the latching members is such that the door is swung into open position at the same operation. Upon release of the handle 51 the control spring 10 acts through the pivoted arm 11 and the flanged latch bolt arm 25 to pull the long bell crank arm 67 forwardly thereby causing the short bell crank arm 66 to push upwardly on the lug to slide the tubular shaft 61 back into normal position. The upward movement of the shaft 61 causes the cams54 and 53 to coact to swing the handle 51 back into its normal position.

The various parts of the door lock are preferably punched out of sheet metal thereby obviating machining which would be required in case the parts were cast. Particular attention is directed to the compact arrangement of the thin stamped metal parts which permit a very thin door lock to be constructed.

The novel arrangement of the inner handle mechanisms disclosed in Figures 12 and 17 permits the use of a rotatable inner handle which, when operated, acts through coacting cam members to pull or push a vertical non-rotatable shaft to cause operation of a pivoted bell crank which in turn acts to retract the lock latching members to permit opening of a vehicle door.

Attention is called to the novel construction of the inner handle mechanisms in both forms of the device illustrated by Figures 2 and 17. The longitudinally movable shafts 43 and 61 when installed are adapted to be adjusted with respect to the cam members to maintain a close adjustment of the co-acting parts. In the form of the device illustrated by Figures 2 and 12, the sleeve 40 is first threaded through the bracket flange 39 so that the upper end.of the sleeve will engage against the flange 41 when the cap 37 is in place. Before mounting the cap 37 in place, however, the shaft 43 is threaded through the slidable block 45 until the lug 47 thereof engages beneath the short bell-crank arm 48 in its normal position. The cap 37 is next secured in place with the squared neck 44 of the shaft 43 projecting through the squared opening in the partition 41. The shaft 43 when installed is set so that the upper cylindrical end thereof will project upwardly through the cap a distance sufficient to permit the handle cam 34 to seat on the stationary cam 35 when the] retaining screw 42 is threaded into the upper end of the shaft 43. It will thus be seen that in the installation of the lock device the longitudinally adjustable shaft 43 may be set to maintain a close adjustment of said shaft with the cam members to insure proper actuation of the latching members when the handle 32 is rotatably operated. Movement of the cam 34 upon the stationary cam 35 acts to slightly elevate the handle 32 as it is rotated.

In the preferred form of the device illustrated in Figure 17, the longitudinally movable shaft 61 is also adapted to be installed to insure a close adjustment of the shaft and its cam 54 with respect to the handle cam 53. In this case the handle 51 is adapted to be rotated without elevating the same, since the shaft cam 54 is mounted to slide with the shaft 61 to cause operation of the lock mechanisms.

I am aware that numerous details of construction may be varied through a wide range without departing from the principles of this invention, and I therefore do not purpose limiting the patent granted otherwise than necessitated by the prior art.

' I claim as my invention:

1. A vehicle door lock comprising a latching member, a wedge member adapted to be moved differentially with'respect to said latching member, an arm pivoted on said wedge member and in contact with said latching member, a spring engaged with said arm to cause the same to hold the latching member and said wedge member in projected latching position, pivoted means in engagement with said latching member, a vertically slidable member in contact with said pivoted means, and a mechanism connected to cause vertical adjustment of said slidable member whereby the pivoted means is operated to cause retraction of the latching member and said wedge member.

2. In a' vehicle door lock of the class described, relatively movable latch and wedge members, a member pivoted on the wedge member and engaging the latch member, resilient means engaged with said pivoted member to hold the latch and wedge members in projected latching position, pivoted means in engagement with said latch member, and a slidable member for operating said pivoted means to cause retraction of said latch and Wedge memcrank arm 49 projects between the back plate 7 and the latch bolt arm 25 and is in contact with the flange 27 of the arm 25.

Inthe preferred form of door lock illustrated in Figures 15 to 20 inclusive the construction of the lock is substantially the same as that already described with the exception of the inner handle mechanism which is constructed as follows:

To open the door 6 from the interior of a closed vehicle body an inner rotatable handle 51 is provided on the top of the door 6. A head 52 is integrally formed at one end of the handle 51 and has integrally formed on the bottom thereof a cam "53. The cam 53 normally seats against a cam 54 formed on the upper end of a slidable sleeve 55. The sleeve 55 isslidably engaged in the sleeve 56 of a cap or plate 57 which isrigidly secured by screws or other suitable means on the top of the door 6. A ke 58 is secured in the sleeve 56 to permit siding movement of the sleeve 55 but holding said sleeve from being rotated. A Z-brace 59 is rigidly secured on the cap 57 and has the upper arm thereof engaged on top of the head 52 of the handle 51 'to hold the head seated upon a conical boss 60 forming a part of the cap 57. Threaded into the lower end of the slidable cam sleeve 55. is the u per end of a tubular vertical shaft 61, w ich projects downwardly into the door lock casing 16. The lower end of the vertical tubular shaft 61 is treaded and has adjustably mounted thereon a guide block 62, which is engaged to slide in a vertical guide channel 63 formed in the back plate of'the door lock. Projecting downwardly through the handle head 52, the cam sleeve 55 and the tubular shaft 61 is a headed bolt 69, the lower threaded end of which is threaded through a stationary lug or flange 64 rigidly formed on the back plate of the lock. Integrally formed on one side of the'block 62 is a horizontal lug or tooth 65, which normally is in a position to engage upon a short arm 66 of a bell crank having a long arm 67. The bell crank is pivotally mounted on a pin 68 provided on the front surface of the back plate 7. The lower end of the long bell crank arm 67 projects between the back plate 7 and the latch bolt arm 25 and is in contact with the flange 27 of said arm 25.

The operation is as follows:

In the form of door lock shown in Figures 1 to 14 inclusive the spring 10 ressing against the pivoted arm 11 acts to hold the latch bolt 22 and the wedge 17 in their projected positions as shown in Figu position the latch bolt 22 engages in the jamb opening 2, and'the. wedge block 17, which has a slidable movement relative to the latch bolt, follows the latch bolt and res'2 and 8. With the door 6 in closed.

wedges against the inclined surfaci 5 of the.

abutment 4 which forms a art of he strike plate 3. As a result of t eforegoing operation, the wedge block'clamps the door to the jamb co-actingas it does with the T-bar 8* secured on the outer edge of the door to permit the flange of the T-bar to bear over the jamb as shown in Figure 8. The latch bolt and wedge block thus serve to hold the door rigidly in place in the door frame to prevent rattlino of the door. The wedge block 17 is slidable with respect to the .latch bolt 22 and under the impulse of the spring 10 is shot or driven into the space between the flat surface of the latch bolt and the surface 5 of the strike plate abutment 4.

The closed door 6 may be opened from the exterior of the vehicle by turning the outer handle or thumb button 28, thereby causing the roll back 31 to press against the latch bolt arm 23 to force the latch bolt 22 inwardly against the action oflthe control spring 10. The flanges 21 of the latch bolt being in contact with the wedge bar 13, both the latch bolt and the wedge are simultaneously retracted as a unit. The door ma now be swung into open position on its hinges. Release of the thumb button 28 permits the stressed spring 10 to again force or shoot the latch bolt 22 and the wedge 17 outwardly through the opening in the back plate flange 8.

To open the door 6 from the interior of the vehicle the inner or upper handle 32 is rotated thereby causing the handle cam 34 to move upwardly on the stationary cam 35. The upward movement of the handle cam head 33 serves to draw or pull the slidable vertical shaft 43 upwardly. The upward movement of the shaft 43 causes the block 45 to slide upwardly in the guide channel 46 whereby the lug 47 of said block acts to throw or swing the short bell crank arm 48 upwardly and thereby swing the long bell crank arm 49 rearwardly. The long bell crank arm 49 being in cont-act with the flange 27 of the latch bolt arm 25, sald arm 49 acts to slidably retract the latch bolt 22 and the wedge 17 associated therewith. With the turning of the handle 32, said handle is slightly elevated due to the action of the handle cam 34 on the stationary cam 35. The handle 32 is rotated to pull the slidable shaft 43 upwardly to retract the latch bolt and wedge to permit the door 6 to be swung outwardly into open position simultaneously with the operation of the handle. The wedge and latch bolt may be simultaneously retracted by either .of the handles 28 or 32 independently of each other from opposite sides of the door. Upon ,release of the handle 32 the spring 10 acts through the arm 11 and the bell crank 48-49 to pull the vertical shaft 43 plate, of an abutment integrally formed member slidable with respect to said latch thereon having an inclined striking smrbolt and having a straight striking surface 15 face, a lock, alatch therein, awedge slidably parallel to said latch bolt adapted to be engaged with said latch, and means engaged moved into engagement with the inclined 5 with said wedge for projecting the wedge surface of said projection.

and latch from said lock with the wedge In testimony whereof I have hereunto contacting the inclined surface of said subscribed my name in the presence of two 20 abutment. 1 k h subscribin witnesses.

1. The combination with a 0c and t e 10 strike plate therefor, of a projection formed BAYARD TAYLOR on said strike plate having an inclined Witnesses: striking surface, a latch bolt adapted to be CHARLES W. HILLS, J r.,

projected from said lock, and a Wedge FRED E. PAESLER. 

